Community Update

First of all, thanks to everyone who made this project a success. The Langston Civic Association partnered with The Mission Continues, BAE Systems Inc., Mayor Bowser's office, Cm. McDuffie's office as well as community volunteers to renovate the courtyard at Browne Education Campus.

More than 20 volunteers showed up in the rain to help pull weeds, build new picnic tables and organize the courtyard to give the children a beautiful outdoor space for studying. The garden now boasts more than 50 new plants including a vegetable and herb garden.

We will be hosting Part 2 of this service project at some point this summer. Due to the weather, we were unable to paint and would like to ask neighbors to keep an eye out for details about that fun, upcoming project.

Also, neighbors with herbs and vegetables to donate to the children's garden should contact sydelle202@gmail.com.

Thanks!

BEFORE & AFTER

The Work We Do Matters

Even if you do not live in our community and would like to donate to the work that we are doing to help improve the lives of the people who live here, please donate. Community organizations like ours need your support.

The Langston Civic Association submitted the first application to ANC5D's grant program.

We are requesting funding in order to support the after school and summer programs for kids at the Patsy V. Hartsfield Center which has been offering out of school enrichment in our community for over a decade. This grant would specifically support the following activities:

4 New Computers -- The children will have access to these computers throughout the year complete with internet access and software to block inappropriate content. The computers will also be locked for security. As many of you know the previous computers at the center were damaged several years ago when a pipe burst and we need to replace them.

School and Art Supplies -- The children in the program will use these supplies.

Chess Training Supplies -- Officer Mincey of MPD will be teaching chess to interested children during this year's summer camp

2 Educational Field Trips-- 1 trip to the Baltimore Aquarium for registered students from 5-13 years of age and and 1 trip to the National Museum of African-American History and Culture.

Thanks so much to everyone who took time out of their busy schedule to attend the Langston Civic Association's community roundtable with Mayor Bowser. These meetings are only effective when neighbors show up and address the issues that are important to them and make it clear that we care.

Please know that this will not be the last of these conversations with the mayor or councilmember and that every single issue addressed will receive follow up from the mayor's staff as well as our civic association president, Sydelle Moore. If you have additional issues, questions or comments, please email us.

There is already a map of sidewalk and street repairs in the hands of our Mayor's Office of Community Relations as well as DDOT to address the specific concerns raised last night. MPD will also be attending the next Langston Civic Association meeting to continue to work on our concerns about recent shootings in the area. The Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement has also dispatched members of their response team to try and help with getting appropriate violence intervention staff to track down and mediate between the parties involved in recent shootings.

The civic association meetings are open to all and we look forward to continuing to work together to enhance civic pride, community engagement and safety. OUR NEXT MEETING WILL BE TUESDAY, MARCH 6, 2018 AT 6 PM at 2109 Maryland Ave NE (rear entrance).

We are writing with important news about the DC Tuition Assistance Grant program (DCTAG), a program that has helped 26,000 students attend and get through college. Today, President Trump released a budget proposal for 2019 that completely eliminates DCTAG. This is grave news for DC. It means that a college education for thousands of DC students is at risk. Congress can and should reject this proposal and fully fund DCTAG for 2019 and beyond. Please help us save DCTAG by signing the #SaveDCTAG petition at savedctag.dc.gov.

For President Trump and the members of Congress who support his budget, our students are simply a line item in a budget. But we know that real lives and livelihoods are at stake. Lives like Ms. Davidson who wrote in to tell us (on graduation day) that because of DCTAG, her daughter graduated from the University of Alabama at Birmingham with a bachelor’s degree in Sociology. And, current UNC-Greensboro student Amaya, who shared that without DCTAG she would not have been able to attend the university where she is double-majoring in Music and Latin American Studies. Amaya credits her ability to earn straight A's in college to the financial peace of mind DCTAG has given her and to her family.

Though the President is proposing to defund DCTAG, we know that Congress makes final decisions about funding. Therefore, as a city, we are coming together to fight for the futures of all of our students.If you are a student with a current year award, fear not, as you will receive your payments as usual this year. If you are a senior who has not yet applied for DCTAG, please apply for an award for 2018 - 2019, we plan to fight this and win.

There is time to save the program, but it will take all of us to do it. We ask that you stand in solidarity and action with us as we work to protect the college education and livelihoods of our students. If you, too, believe that our students deserve a fair shot at creating strong futures, take action right now.

We urge Congress to reject President Trump’s proposal to eliminate DCTAG. Time after time, Washingtonians have come together to spark change. This is yet another moment to show that we are DC Strong and that our DC values are of great importance to us. Over the course of nearly twenty years, DCTAG has helped more than 26,000 Washingtonians get to and through college. Let’s work together to ensure that we can do the same for 26,000 more!

We are asking you to assist us with two things:

1. DC TAG Pledge: Sign the #SaveDCTAG petition at savedctag.dc.gov2. COMMUNICATE: Spread the word on your social media networks using the #SaveDCTAG hashtag